Tiger Woods giving impression that return to glory isn't far off

Will he dart his eyes? Fidget his feet? Will his words say one thing, his body language another?

None of these happened Tuesday at the Ritz Carlton Golf Club, Dove Mountain. Woods was relaxed, upbeat and delivering just enough bravado to suggest the swagger is back.

Hard to say whether this was real or Woods merely putting the con in confidence. The WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship, which begins today, could provide a revealing look inside the head of one of our more celebrated, evaluated and maculated athletes.

It's an event that Woods described as "eyeball-to-eyeball." Each hole is a blatant measure of self-worth.

Mental toughness is imperative

Tuesday, Woods looked nothing like the player at Pebble Beach, the one who entered the final round in the hunt and exited looking demoralized and beaten. His body language reflected the player he was that Sunday, one who missed five putts of 5 feet and shorter, something unheard of in his glory days.

Tuesday, he was a different man.

When told his opening-round partner, Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano of Spain, said Woods wasn't playing his best golf and that he was "beatable," Woods reacted.

"I feel exactly the same way as he does," he said. "I feel he's beatable, too."

Chuckle, chuckle.

A reporter reminded him that he once wrote, "I never saw a putt I didn't like" and wondered whether he still felt that way.

"Every putt can be buried," he said.

Well, well.

He even said he was open to the idea of returning to the Waste Management Phoenix Open, even though it has been a decade since he played there.

"I don't think they quite have the libations as close as they did on 16 when I holed out (in 1997)," he said, smiling.

This hardly sounds like a man drowning in his insecurities.

We also know Woods isn't always who he seems to be.

The double life he led, the one accompanied by a soundtrack of recorded voicemails ("Hey, it's Tiger. I need you to do me a huge favor ... "), and its subsequent outing, transformed a player who had won 14 majors into one who perpetually looks as if he lost his best friend, which in many ways is what the sport has meant to him.

He hasn't won an official event on any tour since the Australian Masters in November 2009. Then, after his personal life unraveled on a public stage, he struggled to regain his game. In the process, he fired his caddie, he hired a new swing coach and he dealt with injuries.

But it's hard not to feel as if he may be turning the corner in 2012, even at 36.

You can evaluate Woods' performance at Pebble Beach as either falling apart on Sunday or being in the hunt heading to Sunday.

He was just 4 strokes behind after Saturday's round and gave us the much-coveted pairing with Phil Mickleson. Mickelson endured after Woods struggled, including bogeying holes 7, 8 and 9, giving Mickelson the fifth time in a row he's had a lower score than Woods when they've played together.

Something similar happened in Abu Dhabi a few weeks ago, when Woods was tied for the lead after 54 holes.

His game seems to be returning to him, except on Sundays, which suggests Woods is still waging a mental battle.

It will be interesting to see if Fernando-Castano's words influence him.

Five years ago, in a news conference before his Accenture match, Stephen Ames was asked about his chances of winning against Woods.

"Anything can happen, especially when he (Tiger) is hitting the ball," Ames said, smiling.

Oh, dear. Bad idea. Woods went on to beat Ames 9 and 8, the biggest margin of victory in this tournament.

Fernandez-Castano's words were rather tame and certainly truthful. It just comes down to how Woods responds to them.

"He's probably not at his best," Fernandez-Castano said. "And you have to look at it that way. Maybe it's a good chance to play good. And maybe I can beat him. That would be a great feeling."

The Woods who spoke to the media Tuesday sounded ready. He complained of being a little "nasally," the result of spending the past week with his kids.

"Once they bring it home," he said, "we all get it."

Colds are contagious.

So is winning.

Time to see if Woods' confidence is real, and not just wishful thinking.